Deer swims ashore and plays with SC beachgoers

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HILTON HEAD, S.C. — A playful deer made its way towards beachgoers at Hilton Head Island over the holiday weekend, frolicking and eventually photobombing a man’s picture.

Beachgoer Steve Doudoukjian says the doe swam ashore before darting between swimmers to get back in the deep end.

People first noticed something unusual in the water out beyond the swimmers.

“We (and most others) noticed something in the water just beyond the breakers but, at first, we couldn’t tell what it was… as she got closer we could tell it was a deer,” Doudoukjian told WCNC. “When she came out of the water it appeared that she was scared by the crowd of people and ran back into the ocean.”

Doudoukjian, who told the Island Packet he has “never seen a deer in the ocean before,” said the animal was still swimming when he left the beach.

In the midst of the fun, he took a picture of the deer and posted it on social media.